Ocean EcoVentures Whale Watching - Cowichan Bay & Parksville B.C.

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Ocean EcoVentures Whale Watching - Cowichan Bay & Parksville B.C.

Whale & Wildlife Adventures Vancouver Island B.C. Come and witness Orca, Humpbacks and marine mammals in the wild! Small tour groups, great service.
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Daily whale watching tours from Cowichan Bay and Parksville B.C. Our Whale Watching tours focus on Transient Orca Whales, Humpback Whales, Grey Whales and Minke Whales. You will also encounter Sea Lions, Bald Eagles, Harbour Seals, Dalls and Harbour Porpoise as well as a myriad of marine birds on your whale watching eco tour.A small, owner-operated family business, Ocean EcoVentures is committed to providing you with an intimate and informative whale watching tour.

06/13/2026

Today is the official start of our sunset tours!

Until September, we’ll be offering two departures a day out of our Cowichan Bay and Parksville locations. If you’ve been thinking about joining one of our tours this season, this is your sign to book!

Join us for a wildlife and whale watching tour exploring the Salish Sea! We regularly encounter Bigg’s Killer Whales, Harbour Seals and Sea Lions and now until the end of the season humpback whales are seen more and more frequently as well! Keep your eyes peeled, we never know what we’ll find!

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷© Captain Jane

06/12/2026

June 10, 2026 – Parksville 1:00 PM Tour

We received an early morning report of Bigg's Killer Whales travelling between Hornby and Denman Islands. After doing a little whale math, we figured that if they continued west, they might just be within reach for our 1:00 pm departure.

About an hour after leaving the dock, we encountered four matrilines of Bigg's Killer Whales totaling 16 animals. The whales were highly social and surface active, including the iconic T063 "Chainsaw," who was particularly fired up.

The encounter became even more remarkable when three humpback whales approached and joined the killer whale party. Humpback whales are known to investigate and closely monitor Bigg's Killer Whales, and interactions between these two species have been documented throughout the Salish Sea and the broader North Pacific. While the purpose of these encounters remains poorly understood, they may play a role in predator assessment, social learning, or anti-predator behaviour. Observations like these provide a fascinating glimpse into the complex behavioural ecology of two of the Salish Sea's most charismatic marine mammals.

06/10/2026

May 15th, 2026 - Cowichan Bay 1pm

Today was spent connecting with humpback whale ‘Scuttle’ who is known to be male and migrates to Mexico during the breeding season. We also caught up with Bigg’s Killer Whales T090’s and T124A4’s near Crane Island and in the San Juan Channel. Led by matriarch’s ‘Eagle’ (T090) and ‘Kittiwake’ (T124A4), both are born in the 1980’s.

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷© Captain Jane

06/07/2026

May 14th, 2026 - Cowichan Bay 1pm

Today we caught up with ‘Big Mama’, one of the most famous humpback whales in the Salish Sea! She was the first humpback whale to be sighted in our waters following the end of commercial whaling in BC in 1967. For many locals she is a symbol of hope and resilience, and we always get a little extra excited when we see her. Since her first sighting back in the 90s she has raised 8 calves and is now a grandmother to at least 7! She is known to migrate to Hawaii and seeing her just a few days after Mother’s Day felt extra special!

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷© Captain Jane

06/04/2026

May 11th, 2026 - Parksville 1pm

Three different species in one day!

On Captain Andi’s tour out of Parksville on May 11th, guests were lucky enough to cross paths with one of the most regularly sighted groups of Bigg’s in our waters: the T019’s - matriarch ‘Mooyah’ and her sons ‘Galiano’ and ‘Spouter’ are fan favourites in the Salish Sea!

Afterwards we encountered a lunge-feeding humpback whale as well as Pacific White-Sided Dolphins. A day well spent for our guests on this tour!

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷© Captain Andi

06/01/2026

May 9th, 2026 - Cowichan Bay 1pm

Encountering one grown male killer whale is already an impressive sight to see but 5 (!) fully grown male killer whales in three separate encounters must be one of our personal records.

On May 9th Captain Jane caught up with T049A1 (‘Noah’), T049A2 (‘Jude’), T051 (‘Rosswell’) & the T101’s (including males ‘Rush’ & ‘Lagoon’). Our guests didn’t have to go far as all groups were travelling close to Cowichan Bay.

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷© Captain Jane

05/29/2026

May 4th, 2026 - Cowichan Bay

On our tour out of Cowichan Bay on May 4th with Captain Jane we encountered one of the first humpback whales of our season! 🐋

It’s always special when we encounter more than one species and while it’s still early in the season for regular humpback whale sightings, they are around!

We were also lucky enough to spend some time with the T49A’s, another matriline we encounter frequently on our tours! The group was travelling without Nan's oldest sons T49A1 ‘Noah’ and T49A2 ‘Jude’ that day.

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷© Captain Jane

05/26/2026

May 4th, 2026 - Parksville 1pm

Glassy conditions in the Parksville area made for another unforgettable tour on May 4th, 2026. Captain Andi and her guests were lucky enough to spend some time with the T090’s (‘Eagle’ and her offspring) as well as T086A1 (‘Nahanni’) and her calf T086A1B (‘Denali’) that day.

Nothing beats the sight of several orcas breaking the surface at same time and swimming in unison.

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷© Captain Andi

05/23/2026

May 2nd, 2026 - Cowichan Bay 1pm

Glassy conditions made for an unforgettable afternoon on our tour out of Cowichan Bay with Captain Jane. We were lucky enough to encounter some of our ‘regulars’, The T046B’s - ‘Raksha’ and her family. This pod includes one of the youngest members of the Bigg’s population, designated T46B8, also known as ‘Pi’. The little calf was first sighted with the pod back in March of this year!

To top it all off, guests met T049A1, ‘Noah’, a 25-year old male with his impressive dorsal fin.

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷©️Captain Jane

05/20/2026

May 1st, 2026 - Parksville 1pm

Nothing compares to watching a group of Bigg’s Killer Whales hunt, and we are always secretly hoping for this kind of encounter during our tours!

Our guests were in for a treat on their tour with Captain Andi out of Parksville on May 1st, 2026. They were able to watch the T123’s take down a sea lion. Needless to say, the hunt was successful and there was lots of surface behaviour and socializing involved. What a memorable encounter!

All images taken with a telephoto lens and cropped for detail.
📷©️ Captain Andrina

Address

1721 Cowichan Bay Road
Cowichan Bay, BC
V0R1N0

Website

http://www.OceanEcoVentures.com/

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